University of Hawaii–West Oʻahu’s Dr. Joyce Chinen recently published an article in the premier issue of the International Journal of Okinawan Studies. Her article, titled “Okinawan Labor and Political Activists in Hawai‘i: Race, Ethnicity, Class and Social Movements in the Mid-20th Century,” critiques notions of “Okinawan exceptionalism” and explores the intersection of demographic factors, progressive social movements, and Okinawan identity in the social mobility of this ethnic group in Hawai‘i. In addition to her work, the March 2010 issue of the International Journal of Okinawan Studies features works by Professors Gregory Smits (Pennsylvania State University), Gary Y. Okihiro (Columbia University), Keiko Katsukata-Inafuku (Waseda University), Masanori Nakahodo (University of the Ryukyus), and others.

Dr. Chinen is a professor of sociology at UH West O‘ahu specializing in the study of the intersection of race, class and gender in various sites of work including employment, household work, carework, volunteer work, and consumption work. She is UH West O‘ahu’s campus liaison for the Bridge To Hope program that assists low-income parents with higher education needs. She is also an advisor to the UH West O‘ahu Sociology Club. Dr. Chinen serves on the executive committee of the newly established Center for Okinawan Studies, and is one of two sociologists on the State of Hawai‘i’s Historic Places Review Board.